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Hello again folks. I've come this time to talk about guilds with a theme. What I mean by this specifically is a guild that isn't just a group of raiders, adventurerers and/or soldiers/gladiators with a spiffy name, but rather a true "guild", which is it's own faction within a faction that represents something specific.

I will use my own guild ideas as examples because I am trying to figure out the answers to questions such as what will it take to make this guild successful, is it even possible to make this concept successful, is the concept lore-abiding, and several more.

In-character, the <Disciples of Tush'ui> is a guild that presents itself as a school for those who desire a life apart from the ways of established society in Stormwind, Darnassus and Ironforge. Here, the masters of Pandaren monastic teachings meet to show Alliance citizens a new lifestyle of discipline and peace. For those who wish to take on a new challenge, the Disciples of Tush'ui can also learn to use meditation and the simple, everyday skills of life as a stepping stone to great strength, skill, and duty. Those of willing hearts can learn to become great protectors of their people and keep the peace which they so cherish, for themselves and for others.

Out of character, the <Disciples of Tush'ui> is an Alliance guild that is both casual-to-moderate role playing and casual-to-moderate PVP and PVE. Those who wish to just role play can be simple monks of our school who can gather around to hear the words of the old masters. But, for those who want to take it further, and want to be a part of the guild with their main character, we will be participating in casual PVP content such as battlegrounds and open world PVP and take part in PVE endeavors such as heroic dungeons, LFR groups, and possibly even combining our efforts with others for a truly hardcore raiding experience. Our motto is "Discipline, Honor, and Balance in all things." and we intend to honor the ways of Tush'ui.

OR

In-character, <The Long Path> is an organisation of people from all walks of life who have come together in a common desire to help their people. With the constant strife of conflict, war, and general upheaval among the nations of Azeroth, the fatigued, the weary, and the wounded are in need of a helping hand! We intend to provide that! Members of our organisation have devoted their lives to helping others in a vast array of ways, be it simply making guests at one of several of our inns feel comforted and welcome or be it offering therapeutic services to wounded soldiers returning from wars. Members of the Long Path have become experts at making the world seem not so terrible for those who have seen truly terrible things!

Out of character, <The Long Path> is a guild that offers spontaneous role playing experiences at several inns and quest hubs throughout the world of warcraft. Talking about your dangerous and great adventures while sipping a delicious cup of tea or relaxing your weary, wounded self in a steam bath with our friendly attendants are just some of the role playing opportunities we offer. AND, if you're feeling adventurous, we encourage you to get out there and spread good will among others, helping them with their personal quests and even following them into battle should you so choose! The possibilities are many here at <The Long Path>!

OR

In-character, the <Stormwind Craftsman's Union> is a foundation sponsored by the people, for the people, for the thousands of individuals out there looking to find the rarest and highest quality items, supplies, and materials in all of Azeroth! Here at the Stormwind Craftsman's Union, we take pride in offering premium services, craftsmanship, and materials for that aspiring craftsman. We are a collection of unique individuals who make it our job, nay our lives to find the rarest items in all the world and bring them to our valued customers in the great hub of commerce in the Alliance! Many among us are simply craftsmen who devote our time to perfecting our chosen skills while others are the lifeblood of our union! For those who want to experience the dangers of our world and claim the rewards from it, become one of our Gatherers! Join this elite caste of individuals who are responsible for acquiring most, if not all of our most valuable stock! Great profit and adventure awaits!

Out of character, the <Stormwind Craftsman's Union> is a unique hybrid RP-PVE guild devoted to monopolizing on people's desire to craft. This three-part guild features purely RP opportunities in our sales, diplomacy, and negotiations section in which you will use your shrewd business tact to sell our premium services and products to the people while also turning a profit for the guild, and for yourself! For those who want to actually take part in said premium services and products, use your crafting skills and part-time gathering skills to stock our shelves with inordinate amounts of valuable items and craft the best items for our customers who either do not wish to learn or have not yet learned to craft the items themselves! And for those who want more of a challenge, become a Gatherer! As a Gatherer you will be part of a group of people who's job it is to go out into the world and collect the rarest and most valuable commodities and deposit them into our stores. Why you ask? Because you will be rewarded with access to our crafting stores and a percentage of our overall profits, which will be stored securely within our vault in Stormwind Bank!

So those are 3 of my ideas. I have tried to find something for everyone within all 3 guilds and I do try to be reasonable with each theme. The first one requires only Monks as that is a part of the Tush'ui theme. The other two allow anyone to join but aren't as mechanically ambitious as the first one because they don't involve much, if any, raiding or PVP. I want to hear what you guys think. These are the kinds of theme guilds I am curious about and again, asking such questions as, are they viable, possible, and lore-abiding?

P.S. I'd also be happy to get into talks with you if you actually decide to take me up on any of these ideas as I will have multiple characters. I just can't put the time in to RUN more than two on an RP level, so be forewarned, I'd need help.

Great work, by the way. Like I have said before: love the excitement for WoW.

I would say that most RP guilds are themed. The Twilight Empire, The Hearthstone, Knights of Dusk, Blackguard, etc. Many others are out there.

My guilds, the TwinSeas Trading Company, as well as the Guardians of the RIghteous Light. They are all themed, as you have defined them. I am reforming & rebuilding the Righteous Light, now that Stepanos DelaCroix is in recovery (in game, he is finished) and we have new people on the realm, and in the guild.

Here is an example of their beliefs, and what a player can expect as a Guardian of the Righteous Light.

The Guardians of the Righteous Light believe that Shadow is the servant of Darkness and it is a Guardian's duty to push the Shadow from the land. They know that in all echelons of society and in every land, Shadow lurks - seeking to corrupt and sway, bringing people into Darkness. They believe that anyone not following the tenets of the Light are potential Darkfriends and Shadowspawn.

MISSION: it is the Guardians single purpose to see that Darkness is pushed away and Shadow eliminated from the world. While they follow the three tenets of the Light: Respect, Tenacity and Compassion, it has been changed to suit their needs in accomplishing their lofty goals. One new tenet has been added: Retribution.

The Guardians understand that Light cannot exist without Darkness, and Darkness without Light. In as much as Shadow are the minions of Darkness, the Guardians of the Righteous Light are the Light's lanterns upon Azeroth, forcing Shadow to fade and withdraw from it's brilliance. When Light is cast upon Shadow, Darkness MUST withdraw.

Their standard features a golden flame upon a field of white. The Flame of Righteousness represents the four Tenets, while the field of White represents salvation from Shadow. The gold represents the Light itself.

RESPECT: The Light MUST be respected as the ONLY path to true salvation. Where the Light shines, Righteous Respect shall follow. Therefore, respect must be given the Guardians in their crusade against the lurking Shadow, as they seek to bring Righteousness to the world. They must respect those who walk in the Righteous Light, understanding that all who journey such a path are Guardians in their own way.

TENACITY: The Guardians of the Righteous Light will seek out and destroy all vestiges of Shadow, pursuing it into every corner of Azeroth and beyond. Only Through the Righteous Light's tenacity will the Shadowy minions of Darkness be defeated and salvation be realized.

COMPASSION: The Righteous Light shows compassion to all who choose the Light, in every way. Where the Light shines, compassion grows and the Guardians of the Righteous Light will illuminate the way. One also shows Compassion by sending another's Shadow-soaked soul into the Righteous Light for purification. When one is closely associated with Darkness, it is sometimes necessary to show compassion and end their existence upon this world by sending them into the Righteous Light for redemption.

RETRIBUTION: The Guardians of the Righteous Light recognize that the world is succumbing to Darkness and that the Righteous Light (the TRUE path of the LIGHT) is being pushed aside by Shadowy false prophets of Darkness. Therefore, the Guardians shall seek retribution against all who walk in Shadow. Only through Retribution can Shadow be expunged, clearing the space for Redemption to occur. Those who walk in Shadow will be judged, and if found un-redeeming, face Retribution under the Righteous Light's brilliant gaze.

MEMBERSHIP: All who choose the Light as their path to salvation are welcomed into the Guardians. Light can enter any being, and therefore even the monstrous races of the world can be the Righteous Light's Guardians. Former Knights of Death, now named Knights of the Ebon blade have faced redemption. Some have chosen the Righteous Light as their redeemer and therefore, are welcomed into the Guardians. Those who have not, shall be given the opportunity to be redeemed and welcomed into the Guardians.

Demon worshipers (warlocks) and Shadow-spawn (shadow priests) will never be welcomed and must always face Retribution by the Inquisitive Hand in order to find redemption for their sinful ways.

Those who claim the arcane as their methodology (mages) must come to realize that only the Light can provide such power, and that the nether from which Mages gain their powers is actually the mind of the Righteous Light itself. Those Mages who choose otherwise shall be seen as tainted with Shadow, therefore requiring redemption by the Righteous Light's Inquisitive Hand.

Fantomas wrote:My guild is a themed guild. You get the general idea from the name. I'm just out to cause chaos and harm In-character. It's just a one man guild I play in my spare time. This was a nice read.

Not very helpful Fantomas...

And thanks for the kind words Thomas, but what I'm trying to figure out is what it takes for these thematic guilds to function, if even possible. What is the likelihood of people wanting to participate? How do you present the guild for recruitment? Things like that.

Nolan wrote:And thanks for the kind words Thomas, but what I'm trying to figure out is what it takes for these thematic guilds to function, if even possible. What is the likelihood of people wanting to participate? How do you present the guild for recruitment? Things like that.

When I joined RH I also wanted to open up a guild of my own and asked a few people for advice regarding that topic. Their responses were true - many people on our server (servers?) are already committed to a guild. Some of them will hop on an alt and help you out by signing the charter and enlisting, but you'll find that it will take some time for your organization to progress in number and in familiarity - that's what I've seen, anyway.

Still, every GM starts somewhere and it's definitely not impossible to effectively establish a guild of your own. If you want to promote it, a good way to start would be to open up a thread on the WoW forums and on this forum, too. Hosting a guild website is another thumbs up that can help you get across the underlying philosophies of your group and its goals.

You'll never know if people will be interested in your guild until you go out and try it for yourself. Set out to offer a new and different RP experience to your members and to those that are thinking of becoming members. Host events regularly and become known in the community.

Let us know if you get around to forming it, Nolan. The ideas you proposed were all things that can be reasonably roleplayed. (My favorite was the Craftsman's Union.)

The points Tideraiser makes are very true. Even with the merger, people looking for new guild homes are going to be scarce. TN also has guilds, which are flooding our forums with recruitment messages. More importantly, one needs to understand what makes a guild work at all, let alone specific RP niche guilds.

Focus on building a small, cohesive core -- people who want to spend the majority of their time in that guild. Be seen doing fun stuff. People are drawn to fun. Realize that the more of one thing your guild focuses on may limit the number of main players it attracts. (e.g. if you ONLY RP, or ONLY PVP, you will have fewer people who want to invest all their time there, because most people want to do a variety of things in the game.)

Running a successful guild is a LOT of work, if you're expecting it to grow beyond a handful of people. Core players eventually translates into core officers, because honestly, a larger guild is WAY too much work to handle alone. Aerana (GM of the Twilight Empire) posted a great thread on what goes into building a guild, here. I urge you to check it out!

LEGION wrote:The points Tideraiser makes are very true. Even with the merger, people looking for new guild homes are going to be scarce. TN also has guilds, which are flooding our forums with recruitment messages. More importantly, one needs to understand what makes a guild work at all, let alone specific RP niche guilds.

Focus on building a small, cohesive core -- people who want to spend the majority of their time in that guild. Be seen doing fun stuff. People are drawn to fun. Realize that the more of one thing your guild focuses on may limit the number of main players it attracts. (e.g. if you ONLY RP, or ONLY PVP, you will have fewer people who want to invest all their time there, because most people want to do a variety of things in the game.)

Running a successful guild is a LOT of work, if you're expecting it to grow beyond a handful of people. Core players eventually translates into core officers, because honestly, a larger guild is WAY too much work to handle alone. Aerana (GM of the Twilight Empire) posted a great thread on what goes into building a guild, here. I urge you to check it out!

If I could upvote this, I absolutely would. While creating a generic "we be mercenaries!!" guild is fine and sometimes works out with the correct management and dedication, you still want roleplayers that form a connection with the guild, or else it may die a slow death. I was [though still am, technically] an officer of Reprisal, and this happened in a rather painful fashion.

I've learned this a good deal with my time starting and curating the Blackwald Syndicate, putting RP first and a theme that people find really fun ('espionage for the greater good') has a real impact on stability. So far, the loyalty and dedication from my membership surprises me every day. We are small, but what we are growing, and the membership is genuinely interested in helping facilitate that.